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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been handed capital punishment for atrocities due to her crackdown on youth demonstrations which led to her ousting.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of allowing lethal force to be used against demonstrators, with approximately 1,400 individuals died during the unrest last year.

Hasina was tried without her presence by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being behind numerous deaths during the protests. The former leader rejected every accusation, calling the trial as "unfair and agenda-driven".

The verdict marks a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over years of repression. Families of those killed and harmed had demanded strict sentences.

Answering the judgment in a five-page statement, the former leader stated the death penalty was the interim government's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a political force and that she was proud of her leadership's history on human rights.

"I have no trepidation to face my accusers in a proper tribunal where the evidence can be weighed and reviewed impartially."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under enhanced protection before the verdict on Monday, with several of her detractors organizing a demonstration and applauding as the verdict was read.

The capital witnessed a sudden increase in turmoil, with dozens of bombs exploded and public transport vehicles burned in the time before the verdict.

One explosive incident was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, local police official the authorities' representative told press agencies.

The student-led uprising last year commenced through demands to abolish public sector reservation policies but evolved into a wider anti-government movement.

International human rights monitors declared in an analysis in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could amount to "human rights atrocities".

The report documented the firing at close quarters of certain demonstrators, the intentional injuring of others, unjustified apprehensions and torture.

Unauthorized recordings of a telephone conversation involving Hasina verified by media examinations earlier this year suggested she had approved the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the proceedings.

Prior to the ruling, kin of those fatally injured in the unrest informed news agencies they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

Ramjan Ali, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for Hasina and others who have "committed acts of vengeance and abused their power".

Lucky Akther, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted the former leader's punishment to be "implemented before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will achieve closure in their souls."

After her departure, an interim government under the guidance of Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A national vote is set for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the her former political organization, the former ruling party, was prohibited by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

Hasina warned in the previous month that if the party's candidates were banned from standing in the imminent electoral process, countless would abstain the vote.

The verdict now poses a diplomatic challenge for India and Bangladesh. Authorities have sought her extradition but so far India has expressed no readiness to acquiesce.

Her officially designated attorney her legal counsel said he was "disappointed and hoping the outcome had varied".

"I even cannot appeal because my defendants are not present; which is why I am disheartened," he continued.

Last week, her legal team said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN pointing out major judicial fairness and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial alongside her ex-interior minister and top law enforcement officer.

Although the punishment provides certain resolution to kin of victims in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the country's political divisions.

"The fury directed at Hasina and the Awami League has not decreased," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka told media outlets. "Both she and the organization has apologised or shown any remorse for the killings of hundreds of people."

The advocate declared "This complicates matters for the organization to receive endorsement by a majority of people in this nation."

The activist added that the punishment was not finality for the relatives of those killed and injured.

"We support multiple individuals who lost their limbs forever, they are now disabled, because of the suppression. They are incapable of excusing her."

An analyst, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it even more difficult" for her party to become a standard element of the country's governance system again.

This could alter if "there is some kind of apology and a distancing from the former leader and the former hierarchy," he said.